Excerpts from Lee Iacocca's new book

[txusa03]

Anyone read his new book yet?

Here are a few paragraphs from his new book as Lee Iacocca says:

'Am I the only guy in this country who's fed up with what's
happening? Where the hell is our outrage? We should be screaming
bloody murder. We've got a gang of clueless bozos steering our ship of
state right over a cliff, we've got corporate gangsters stealing us
blind, and we can't even clean up after a hurricane much less build a
hybrid car.
But instead of getting mad, everyone sits around and nods their heads
when the politicians say, 'Stay the course'

Stay the course? You've got to be kidding. This is America ,
not the damned 'Titanic'. I'll give you a sound bite: 'Throw all the
bums out!'

You might think I'm getting senile, that I've gone off my rocker,
and maybe I have. But someone has to speak up. I hardly recognize
this country anymore. The most famous business leaders are not the
innovators but the guys in handcuffs. While we're fiddling in Iraq ,
the Middle East is burning and nobody seems to know what to do. And the
press is waving 'pompoms' instead of asking hard questions. That's not
the promise of the ' America ' my parents and yours traveled across the
ocean for. I've had enough. How about you?

I'll go a step further. You can't call yourself a patriot if
you're not outraged. This is a fight I'm ready and willing to have. The
Biggest 'C' is Crisis!

Leaders are made, not born. Leadership is forged in times of
crisis. It's easy to sit there with your feet up on the desk and talk
theory. Or send someone else's kids off to war when you've never seen a
battlefield yourself. It's another thing to lead when your world comes
tumbling down.

On September 11, 2001, we needed a strong leader more than any
other time in our history. We needed a steady hand to guide us out of
the ashes. A Hell of a Mess So here's where we stand. We're immersed
in a bloody war with no plan for winning and no plan for leaving. We're
running the biggest deficit in the history of the country.
We're losing the manufacturing edge to Asia , while our once-great
companies are getting slaughtered by health care costs. Gas prices are
skyrocketing, and nobody in power has a coherent energy policy. Our
schools are in trouble. Our borders are like sieves. The middle class
is being squeezed every which way These are times that cry out for
leadership.

But when you look around, you've got to ask:'Where have all the
leaders gone?' Where are the curious, creative communicators? Where
are the people of character, courage, conviction, omnipotence, and
common sense? I may be a sucker for alliteration, but I think you get
the point.

Name me a leader who has a better idea for homeland security than
making us take off our shoes in airports and throw away our shampoo?
We've spent billions of dollars building a huge new bureaucracy, and all
we know how to do is react to things that have already happened.

Name me one leader who emerged from the crisis of Hurricane
Katrina. Congress has yet to spend a single day evaluating the response
to the hurricane, or demanding accountability for the decisions that
were made in the crucial hours after the storm.

Everyone's hunkering down, fingers crossed, hoping it doesn't
happen again. Now, that's just crazy. Storms happen. Deal with it.
Make a plan. Figure out what you're going to do the next time. Name me
an industry leader who is thinking creatively about how we can restore
our competitive edge in manufacturing. Who would have
believed that there could ever be a time when 'The Big Three'
referred to Japanese car companies? How did this happen, and more
important, what are we going to do about it?

Name me a government leader who can articulate a plan for paying
down the debit, or solving the energy crisis, or managing the health
care problem.The silence is deafening. But these are the crises that
are eating away at our country and milking the middle class dry.

I have news for the gang in Congress. We didn't elect you to sit
on your asses and do nothing and remain silent while our democracy is
being hijacked and our greatness is being replaced with mediocrity.
What is everybody so afraid of? That some bonehead on Fox News will
call them a name? Give me a break. Why don't you guys show so me spine
for a change?

Had Enough?
Hey, I'm not trying to be the voice of gloom and doom here. I'm
trying to light a fire. I'm speaking out because I have hope I believe
in America . In my lifetime I've had the privilege of living through
some of America's greatest moments. I've also experienced some of our
worst crises: the 'Great Depression', 'World War II', the 'Korean War',
the 'Kennedy Assassination', the 'Vietnam War', the 1970's oil crisis,
and the struggles of recent years culminating with 9/11. If I've
learned one thing, it's this: 'You don't get anywhere by standing on the
sidelines waiting for somebody else to take action. Whether it's
building a better car or building a better future for our children, we
all have a role to play. That's the challenge I'm raising in this book.
It's a call to 'Action' for people who, like me, believe in America .
It's not too late, but it's getting pretty close. So let' s shake off
the crap and go to work. Let's tell 'em all we've had 'enough.'

[tek818]

so true... I wonder what chances a presidential candidate would have if they ran on the notion that they would put the entire Bush regime in jail... That alone would get my vote.

[ganeil]

What I find most disturbing is that Mr. Iacocca seems to believe that the answer to the problems he cites is government. I guess that makes sense seeing as the last company he ran had to be rescued by the federal government.

Originally Posted by tek818

so true... I wonder what chances a presidential candidate would have if they ran on the notion that they would put the entire Bush regime in jail... That alone would get my vote.

Hmmm... you would vote for someone who would promise to throw his political opponents in jail? No trial? No due process?

Do everyone a favor and DO NOT VOTE.

[pmeloche]

Strong words from a guy who cried to the government for help when Chrysler was in the hole.